Novelty clock



May 28, 1940- l.. G. LIVINGSTON ET AL 2,202,214

NOVELTY cm ox Filed 0t 23. 1957 2 Sheets-Sheet 1 May 28. 1940- L. G. LlvlNGsroN E-r AL 2,202,214

NOVELTY CLOCK Filed Oct. 23, 1937 2 Sheets-Sheet 2.

6%@ www ATTORNEY.

Patented May 28, 1940 UNETED STATES PATENT OFFCE NOVELTY CLOCK Livingston Application October' 23, 1937, Serial No. 170,614

Claims.

This invention relates to novelty clocks, and particularly to a clock designed to attract attention by normally acting in an eccentric manner and by showing the correct time of day only 5 at certain times.

It is the object of the invention to provide a clock having the usual face and hands, with means for moving the hands with no reference to the time of day, and with other means to control the movement of the hands, or to stop the hands at a position with respect to the face to indicate the exact time in the conventional manner.

This and other objects which will appear froml an understanding of the following specification and accompanying drawings are accomplished by the provision of a normally operating clock mechanism which carries hands revolving behind an opaque face; another set of hands which revolve before the face and are therefore visible from a position in front of the face are moved clockwise and counterclockwise atvaryingspeeds, to produce an effect which appears ridiculous when contrasted with the operation of conventional clocks and therefore attracts the attention of onlookers or passersby to the clock and to any display or advertising shown therewith. At intervals which may be controlled either automatically or by observers, the eccentrically-operating hands may be caused to stop at positions corresponding :la to the hands which are concealed by the opaque face, and thereby indicate the time of day.

One form of the invention is exemplied in the accompanying drawings and specication, but it should be understood that this disclosure If is intended not to limit the invention to any specific form, as the objects of the invention may be carried out in many different ways.

In the drawings- Fig. l is a central vertical sectional view of a novelty clock embodying the invention;

Fig. 2 is a front elevation, on a reduced scale, of the same clock;

Fig. 3 is an enlarged sectional view looking 5,3 on the line III-III of Fig. 1;

Fig. 4 is an enlarged view of a modified form of a portion of the mechanism illustrated in Fig. 1;

Fig. 5 is a diagrammatic illustration of the a electric circuits employed in the operation of the clock illustrated in Fig. l;

Fig. 6 is an enlarged View of the portion of the clock illustrated in Fig. l which supports and rotates the clock hands in an eccentric manner;

and

Fig. 7 is a sectional view taken on the line VII- VII of Fig. 6.

As illustrated in the drawings, the invention is disclosed as contained by a casing I0, the front side of which may be closed by a transparent 5 glass window II held in position in any suitable manner, as by a threaded ring I2. Behind the glass II is a wall I3 which forms the face of the clock and which is preferably formed of nontransparent vmaterial such, for example, as glass 10 which has been colored or frosted to render it non-transparent. The wall I3 is provided with the usual numbers, as indicated in Fig. 2 of the drawings, so that it constitutes a clock face.

Within the housing Ill a conventional clock 15 mechanism not shown is contained by a casing indicated at I4. This clock mechanism may be of either an electrical or mechanical type, and is adapted to operate concentric shafts I5 and I6, which shafts correspond to those on an ordinary 20 clock which support and drive the hour-hand and minute-hand respectively. In the present case, the shafts I5 and I6 support and drive arms Il and I 3. For convenience, the arms I'I and I8 will be referred to as the hour arm and minute arm respectively. The former carries an hour magnet I9 at one of its ends, and the latter carries a minute magnet 2U at one of its ends. The magnets I9 and 2U are counterbalanced by Weights 2I carried at the opposite ends of the 30 y arms Il and I3. The magnets I9 and 20 are supported for rotation by their respective arms in a plane parallel to and directly behind the nontransparent face of the clock so that, although they are not visible from the exterior of the clock, their positions will at all times designate the correct time of day.

Disposed in front of thev wall I3 so that they overlie the clock face are the conventional hourhand 22 and minute-hand 23. The hands 22 and 40 23 are driven by a mechanism generally indicated at 2li in Fig. l and, presently to be described in detail, in a manner to cause them to rotate at varying speeds and in opposite directions with an action that is eccentric and designed to call attention to the operation of the clock. Each of the hands 22 and 23 carries a magnetically attractable member as indicated at 25 and 25 in Fig. 1, and which are counterbalanced by suitable Weights 2l at the opposite ends of the hands. 50 The elements 25 and 26 are disposed at equal distances radially from the center of the clock face with the magnets I9 and 20, respectively, so that upon energization of the magnets I9 and 20 the elements 25 and 26 will be attracted to the 55 magnets, causing the hands to stop their erratic motion and come to rest in a position to indicate the propel' time of day.

Figs. l, 3, 6 and '7 illustrate the details of a. suitable mechanism for imparting the normal eccentric operation to the hands 22 and 23. In these ngures, a central bushing Sii is shown as connected to the wall i3 by means of a nut di and as supporting an upwardly extending bracket 32 and an inwardly extending bracket 333. The minute-hand 2 3, as best illustrated in Fig. 6, is supported by a square shaft 3Q journaled at its inner end in a bearing 35 formed in the bracket 33. The hour-hand 22 is supported by a bushing 3G which is journaled in the bushing Sil, the interior oi the bushing Sii being hexagonal. Both the minute-hand and the hour-hand are rotated through a horizontally disposed driving disk lili carried by a shaft [il which is driven by an electric motor lli! which may include reduction gearing not shown to govern the speed of rotation of the disk itil.

In order that the constant rotary movement of the disk 41B may be transmitted to the minutehand and hour-hand at variable speeds and periodically in opposite directions, the minute-hand shaft 34 is provided with a sliding drive i3 which includes a wheel fili contacting the driving disk lili, and the hour-hand bushing 3b is provided with an internally iitted sliding drive member providedwith a wheel lfd contacting the driving disk fili. The drive members it and [i5 are relatively rotatable, the member i3 serving as a bearing for the member 45, and are movable longitudinally with respect to the shafts which operate the hands 2 and These drive members are locked against longitudinal movement with respect to each other by means of a nut iii on the end of the inner member it which cooperates with a ,i shoulder /ii on said inner member to prevent longitudinal movement thereon of the outer' mem-` ber lili.

Due to the construction just described, the driving members [i3 and iii may rotate independentn ly of each other and may be moved longitudinally with respect to their common axisl oi rotation, but not with respect to each other. As the rotation of these driving members is imparted to them through their wheels fifi and it which engage the driving disk titl, it is apparent that any longitudinal movement will cause the driving wheels to move radially over the driving surface of the disk liti, thereby varying their speed of rotation and causing them to reverse their direction of rotation as they pass the center of the disk All.

A bell crank 50 (see Fig. 3) which is pivotally supported by a bracket iii has a bifurcated end which carries pins 52 engageable with a groove in the member 153 (see Fig. 6). The opposite end of this bell crank 5i] is pivotally connected with a crank arm 5LB which leads to an eccentric strap 55 surrounding an eccentric cam 5t secured to and driven by the shaft li of the motor 42. Consequently, rotation of the shaft il oscillates the bell crank and imparts a reciprocal movement to the drive members i3 and lili, causing their respective wheels lill and iii to move radially of the driving disk lili. ln this manner the hands 22 and 23 are caused to move at varying speeds and alternately in opposite directions with no apparent reason and obviously with no relation to the correct time of day.

When the magnets le and til are energized, the hands 22 and 23 are brought to rest in positions corresponding to the positions of the magnets, and the operation of the motor 12, which normally drives the hands 2 2 and 23, is interrupted in the manner illustrated in the wiring diagram shown in Fig. 5.

Referring now to Fig. 5, the magnets ill and 25 are shown as energized from a suitable source of electric energy through lead wires i and iii. The wire El is grounded through the clock mechanism iii and arms il and l@ to both of the magnets and the wire t@ leads to a pair of spring fingers i322 which engage collector rings G3 and carried by the arms il and i8 and connected with the magnets ill and 2t, respectively, so that they may be continuously energized during the rotation of the arms. The wire 6i) includes a switch iii which is operated by a relay 'li in conjunction with a dashpot l2. The coil of the relay may be energized by closing a Switch 'i3 which connects itwith the main lines Ell and 6i.

The switch it?, which is shown as a push-button, is illustrative of any type of switch that it may be desirable to use to close the circuit which causes the clock to tell the proper time. For example, if the clock is displayed in a window, the switch 'it may be of the type that is closed through the mechanism of a photo-sensitive cell so that any person stepping up to the window to view its operation will interrupt a light beam and cause the switch to be closed. As this and other types of switches that operate in novel manners are well-known, it is unnecessary that a further disclosure of the same be made herein.

Upon closing oi the switch T3, the relay El is energized to raise its armature lll and close the switch 'it against the resilient switch ngers l5. Connected with the upper end of the armature 'ifi is, a plunger in the dashpot 'l2 which moves upwardly with comparatively little resistance, but which moves downwardly slowly, due to the fact that it must force the air or other fluid in the dashpot through a bleeder port Td, the opening to which is controlled by an adjusting screw i8. Thus, when the switch 'Hi is closed, it will remain closed for a period of time determined by adjustment of the screw 78 and sufiicient to permit the successful operation of the clock.

The motor i2 is energized through conductors 8E and iii connecting it with the main circuit, and the conductor 3i includes a relay switch 82 which is opened to de-energize the motor and permit the hands 22 and 23 to remain still when they have been attracted by the magnets I9 and 2G. In order to accomplish this a relay Bft, which, upon being energized opens the switch, is connected with the main circuit by conductors and tt. rThe conductor 85 includes a switch which comprises a pair of rings ill and t8 secured to the face and which may be electrically connected by contact members 89 and 90 on the hands 22 and 23. When the magnets draw the hands toward the face of the clock, these contact members engage the rings 8l and im, and through the metallic bodies of the hands themselves, the rings are bridged to close the circuit to the relay Sii, thereby opening the switch 82 and stopping the operation of the motor 42. Thus when the switch 13 is closed, the magnets i9 and il@ are energized, and as the hands 22 and 23 during their normal erratic motion pass these magnets, they come to a stop to indicate with respect to the face of the clock the proper time of day. Should one hand be stopped before the other, the motor i2 will continue to operate until the other hand registers with its magnet and stops. During the intervening moment, the driving wheel M or 4B of the hand which has been stopped will slide against the driving disk 453 rather than rotate therewith, and it is desirable that the pressure of the disk 4D be suiilciently light to permit this momentary sliding of either one Wheel or the other. When both hands have come to rest, the motor and driving disk 4!) will also stop.

It is apparent from the Wiring diagram in Fig. 5 that some ci the Wires shown there, particularly those portions of the wire 8G which connect with the rings 87 and 88, must be disposed between the surface of the wall I3 and the rotating magnets i9 and 2li. These wires. may be very small and placed in close contact with the Wall I3 to avoid being scraped by the magnets, but a preerred structure to avoid contact between such wires and the magnets is illustrated in Fig. 4 of the drawings wherein the wall I3 is shown as made of two spaced layers of glass or similar material so that the wires 86 may be disposed between these layers and thus will be protected from any possibility of contact by the magnets I9 and 2G.

In operation, the face of the clock will appear as it is illustrated in Fig. 2 with the invisible arms il and I8 indicating the correct time and the visible hands 22 and 23 rotating until the switch is closed which compels the clock to tell the time. The hand 22 is then stopped by the magnet I9, and the hand 23 is stopped by the magnet 2U, and both hands will remain in this position until the switch is again opened by the mechanism described above.

The clock as described above gives the correct time in any given time Zone, but the earths surface is divided into twenty-four time zones and it is sometimes desirable to know the time in one or more of the other Zones. By substituting for the magnets I9 and 20 complete circles of magnets, each circle containing twenty-four equally spaced magnets, the correct time in any one of the earths time zones could be given by the single clock. The magnets would of course be energized in pairs by twenty-four separate circuits controlled by the same number of switches corresponding to the switch 13 and each labeled to indicate the Zone controlled by it.

While but a single form of the invention is described and shown herein, it is of course to be understood that many changes may be resorted to in the construction and arrangement of the parts thereof Within the scope of the appended claims.

Having thus described our invention, what we claim and desire to secure by Letters Patent isl. A clock comprising a pair of hands rotatable before a face, means normally effecting erratic operation of said hands, a clock mechanism concealed behind the face and normally operating independently of said hands, and means operable to effect control of the hands by said mechanism.

2. A clock comprising a pair oi hands rotatable before a clock face, drive means for continuously rotating said hands without reference to the time of day, a clock mechanism concealed behind said face, and means operable to effect control of the hands by the clock mechanism.

3. A novelty clock comprising a clock face, a clock mechanism, a pair of magnets moved by said clock mechanism in circular paths behind the face in the manner of the hands of a clock, a pair of hands carrying magnetic material rotatable n front of the clock face, and means for energizing said magnets to cause said hands to be attracted by them to indicate the time of day.

4. A novelty clock comprising a clock face, a clock mechanism, a pair of magnets supported and moved by said clock mechanism in circular paths behind said face, a pair of hands carrying magnetic material disposed in front of the face, a motor and means for driving said hands in an erratic manner by said motor, and means for energizing said magnets and stopping said motor to cause the hands to be attracted by the magnets and to be stopped in positions telling the correct time of day.

5. A clock of the character described comprising a clock mechanism, a pair of arms driven by said mechanism and corresponding to the minute-hand and hour-hand of a conventional clock, an electromagnet carried by each arm and rotatable thereby, a clock face concealing said mechanism and magnets, a pair of hands rotatable in front of said face, a motor normally driving said hands without reference to the time, means for energizing said magnets whereby they will cause the hands to stop in positions indicating the correct time, and means operable upon stopping of the hands to de-energize said motor.

LEON G. LIVINGSTON. ALDICE O. DINSDALE. 

